


The Price of Silence

by Essenity



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Multi, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Sexual Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Rape/Non-con Elements, Self-Harm, Underage Rape/Non-con
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-24
Updated: 2014-08-24
Packaged: 2018-02-14 12:35:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2192055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Essenity/pseuds/Essenity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve's not so innocent groping triggers Tony's memories of his childhood sexual abuse.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Price of Silence

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the AvengerKink meme: http://avengerkink.livejournal.com/19458.html?thread=46396162#t46396162
> 
> Seeing Chris Evans pawing lots of his colleagues at SDCC I had the idea.
> 
> Steve has this habit to casual touch his team mates. Some more, some less. But what seems to be casual is actually Steve feeling them up, grabbing Tony's boob, slapping Clint's butt, covering Natasha with his hand on her hip, things like that. It doesn't seem too sexual but Steve is a littly pervy, he totally goes for his 'secret' touches.
> 
> One of the team (I have Tony, Clint or Bruce in my mind) was sexually abused as a child and Steve's touches on their privates trigger flashbacks...

No one notices until someone gets physically hurt suffering from internal conflict. It's a disease really. A virus implanting itself deep inside your core, dormant until triggered. Then it's all snowballing downhill from there when the virus is shaken awake and it unravels itself and spreads up and out, reaching for the surface until it sees the light where it will feed and grow on fear and hatred before it will wrap itself around your beating heart and constrict your breathing. It will laugh as you drown in emotions.

No one notices because no one is watching out for the signs. No one notices because it's casual. No one notices because it's Steve. No one notices because Tony never voices his distress. No one notices because Tony never says no, _don't_. Even Tony doesn't notice until he walks in on Steve and Natasha in the gym. The visual hits him like a bag of bricks, like an assault on his own body, knocking the breath from his lungs and the scarring from the arc reactor burns. But once Tony noticed it, he couldn't stop noticing. His breath would catch each time he saw Steve's hand rest upon someone's body. His lungs would stop functioning every time Steve moved close and they refused to work until Steve moved past.

It's his fault really, Tony rationalizes. For weeks, Tony watches it happen to the others, watches it grow from the seemingly innocent fleeting touches into the all too overwhelmingly intimate and increasingly sexual caresses. He knew it was inevitable that Steve would eventually find his way to Tony. But no one else objected, not even Natasha who easily and eagerly blocked Tony's advances back when she was still Natalie or Natalya or Nikita. So Tony keeps his mouth shut, like his life depends on it. He really shouldn't have, because then maybe Steve would keep his hands to himself.

Tony watches.

Natasha was the first he notices. It's six in the morning and Tony hasn't gone to sleep yet. But he's keen for some food and knowing Steve, he'd probably be in the gym already. Tony walks in with his fingers rubbing the bridge of his nose and his eyes unfocused and pointed towards the floor. He's tired, but he's hungry and he can hear the panting and the sound of flesh against flesh.

 

"No, not like that," Steve says and when Tony finishes rubbing the tension from his face, he glances at the scene on the gym floor. His mouth goes dry and his arm drops slack against his body. It's okay, Tony tells himself. Steve is teaching Natasha an old trick. It's old considering Natasha's training is from the 21st Century. It's still a trick because it's classic. Steve is behind Natasha who's back is leaning against Steve's front for balance. Steve has one hand down on her pelvic bone and his left has snaked under her left arm and across her chest, his forearm resting between her breasts and his palm flat on her right shoulder. "Come on," Steve uses his right leg to nudge Natasha's and his hand slides down closer to her crotch. Steve cups his fingers at her inner thigh, forcing her leg up a fraction and his thumb digs in the ditch to the side of her mons pubis.

Natasha's left leg buckles and she lets out a surprised squeal.

"Easy," Steve says smoothly and slowly eases her leg back down as Natasha regains her composure. Natasha brings her thigh together and Steve slowly slides his hand up over the center of her crotch.

It's clearly and undoubtedly sexual harassment in Tony's books so he's surprised when Natasha turns excitedly to face Steve. "I forgot about that one. Dirty trick that one, I don't usually get close enough to use that."

Steve winks at her and Tony does an abrupt about turn and gets the fuck out of there. There's an uneasy feeling in his stomach and he rubs at his throat as if there's something strangling him. It's not until Tony is safe under his quilts that he realizes he's still hungry. It's too late now, he's in bed and a little apprehensive about leaving the safe confines of his Italian silk covers. When he closes his eyes, he sees Steve's hand and he rubs his thighs roughly against each other to get rid of the phantom feeling of Steve's hand cupping his crotch. Disgusting.


End file.
